Turning Swallow
Summary:
OR, One morning, four-year-old Sasaki Kojiro remembers a life not yet lived, and decides to do something about it. History changes. SI!Sasaki Kojiro. Expect general lightheartedness, but dark topics when the time comes.
A/N: MB, CHAPTER DIDN'T UPLOAD PROPERLY
CH. 29 START
A burst of surprise shot through Kojiro's mind, but Kojiro had already made his decision. Despite the fear that presented itself when he looked at this woman, fear of how she'd appeared within a moment's notice, fear of how she'd blocked the strike to Ogimachi, though the blade had been a mere inch away from severing the man's jugular, Kojiro stared at her, eyes narrowed. How terrifying. The woman, Mochizuki Chiyome, had absolutely no presence. Had Kojiro not seen her appear in front of him, he might've mistaken Chiyome for a peculiar, if well made, painted statue. Even if his eyes told his brain that she was there, the rest of his senses told him he was hallucinating. Her chest did not rise in breathe, even after a thirty second staring contest, and her clothing did not rustle. All she did was stare into his eyes, with those unsettling purple eyes of hers. It was as still as she was, open and unblinking. It was not her appearance that was unnatural. In a different circumstance, Kojiro could have called her attractive, but in the here and now, she was unnatural, almost inhuman.
Mochizuki Chiyome was dangerous. Too dangerous to engage in battle without dealing with loose ends, so Kojiro straightened himself, leaving his position of readiness and turning to Kano.
In a stern voice, he spoke commandingly, "Kano. Leave. Go to the army barracks in the city. Ask for Nobunaga, tell them that I sent you."
The boy rose, shot a fearful glance at Chiyome, then turned to run, giving Kojiro an apologetic look as he left. She let him leave without harm, a show of mercy, if there ever was one. Kojiro had no doubt that if she had wanted to kill him, Kano would have been cut down instantaneously. He wouldn't have been able to rescue the boy. He wasn't even sure if he would be able to keep himself safe, given the speed that Chiyome had shown herself to be capable of. In spite of his uncertainty though, Kojiro hardened his eyes.
"Mochizuki Chiyome," he called, "I will not leave. Emperor Ohimachi must die. My thanks for your offer of mercy, however."
The woman sighed, saying, "I was afraid that you'd say that."
She closed her eyes, sighing deeply, then spoke, "I meant what I said. It would be a shame to kill you. This will hurt. Be ready."
Kojiro's eyes zeroed in on his foe. In her hands were two swords, both wakizashi, their reach a bit longer than his tanto. A problem, given that he only had his tanto out. Fighting two blades with one was possible, but generally, the person with a single sword had a long one, not a tanto. The second issue was the way she'd said her name, like she was so important, or so dangerous, in the world of ninja that her saying so could nullify the orders of another clan's leader entirely. Kojiro was willing to bet that it was because she was dangerous. Had he been a ninja and knew full well of Chiyome's ability, Kojiro knew he likely would have run. But he wasn't a ninja, and as a general rule, samurai tended to be stubborn. Kojiro was the most stubborn of all. How was he supposed to change history itself, if he wasn't?
Chiyome vanished, without even a gust displaced gust of air to communicate her disappearance. Kojiro's senses came on full alert, waiting nervously, searching for any indication of attack. There was the smallest sound of a blade cutting through air, and Kojiro threw himself forwards. He hit the ground with a roll, turning to face the woman as quickly as he could. Where he'd just been, Chiyome was, sword held out at the end of a swing. Kojiro's chest tightened involuntarily, as he noticed that the sword was the wrong way around. She'd sliced at him with the curve of the blade, rather than the edge. That was what had made the noise. Otherwise, Kojiro might've found his neck broken, or worse, battered off entirely.
"Will you not give up, boy?" Chiyome pleaded, "There's no need for this. You can just leave. You won't be faulted. The Emperor is under my protection. You will not be able to take his life."
Kojiro didn't respond, simply pulling out his other sword, the wakizashi that he'd taken from the assassin who'd tried to kill Nobunaga. In a situation like this, Kojiro needed all the advantages he could get. He threw the sword's sheath far away, so that it couldn't be used to unbalance him. The action seemed to cause a connection to spark through the Emperor's brain and he called to Chiyome.
Ogimachi spoke shrilly, exclaiming, "Hey! Woman! That's not one of your damn ninja! He's the samurai boy that was with that bitch, Oda Nobunaga. Kill him already, stop chatting!"
Kojiro braced for another attack, but Chiyome just growled, whipping around. She sheathed her sword, reached into her top to pull out something. The woman raised her arm and Kojiro realized it was a kunai, a moment before Chiyome's hand blurred. The knife reappeared a second later, quivering in the ground. There was something on it, and as the Emperor reached down to cup his pelvis, Kojiro realized that there was a scrap of cloth embedded in the ground. A quick glance at Ogimachi's pants confirmed that the knife had indeed come a centimeter from preventing Ogimachi from continuing his family line.
Her hand remained extended as she said coldly, "I've told you this once, Emperor Ogimachi. I am not your servant. Do not presume to command me like one of them. If you have a request, speak like a reasonable person."
The man simply nodded, shivering with fear. Despite himself, Kojiro felt sympathy for Ogimachi. Then, Chiyome's eyes locked onto his and Kojiro lost all positive emotion for the man. The woman's eyes were narrowed with interest. Not the regret that'd been there before or the look of boredom. Interest.
"A samurai?" she wondered idly, "A samurai untrained in the ninja arts managed to fool me? Had your companion not been shaking, you'd have killed the Emperor and I wouldn't have been able to react until it was too late. You've got potential, boy. Abandon whatever Lord you serve and come with me. I'll make you far more powerful that any army or political station could make you. With the skills I would teach you, you could rule this country in a decade, Even without an army."
That…was a tempting offer. Had he gotten it when he'd first left Ichijodani, Kojiro would have taken it in a heartbeat. What Chiyome was offering was personal power, the only kind of power that truly mattered. She was offering whatever secret ninja method she'd used to become so frighteningly agile and so unnaturally strong. But, that had only been before. Now, what reason did Kojiro have to want to rule the country? Kojiro didn't want to rule Japan, he wanted to explore the world. This little corner of the world, no matter how incredible, was only a small percentage of all the wonders available. He'd already put all this effort into making Nobunaga the ruler of Japan, wouldn't going back on that just be a waste of effort? The physical abilities were seductive, but despite the way she talked, Chiyome still physically looked like a teenager. A stray thought came to mind, from the memories of his other self. Hadn't this woman served Takeda Shingen until he'd died? That was some twenty years ago. There were obvious drawbacks here. There was a set path to personal power already in Embodiment, which he had yet to achieve, so there was no need for a detour. Chiyome's right hand was extended, as if she expected Kojiro to immediately accept the offer.
Kojiro couldn't not take advantage of the offered hand, so he walked forward, solemnly, as if he really was going to accept the offer. When he got close enough for his next attack to be undodgeable, Kojiro attacked. He stabbed at the woman's hand, intending to pierce it clean through, but somehow, Chiyome actually reacted, managing to pull her hand back, before the wakizashi in her left palm swept for Kojiro's throat. He needed to block that, so he pulled his wakizashi back up from its' stab, using it to parry her weapon. Chiyome's hand rocketed forwards, right hand clenched into a fist. With the woman's strength, the fist making contact would break bone, so Kojiro was forced to make an awkward little hop sideways. When he landed, Kojiro grabbed the still extended arm and brought his leg up, hoping to slam it into her side. She aborted the punch, so Kojiro shoved her away before Chiyome could grapple him. Ten out of ten times, he would lose that battle.
"Of course!" the woman declared, laughing joyously, "That's a wonderful answer. If I want to be your master, I'll obviously have to show youhow much you still have to learn!"
Her eyes were glowing. Glowing. Chiyome's eyes had already been a vibrant purple, but now, they were just vibrant, they were giving off light. The calm calculation in the eyes previously had vanished, and was replaced by madness. Obviously, Mochizuki Chiyome was insane, though if it was simple mental illness or some mystical split personality, Kojiro had no clue. The madness in her eyes was a manic and greedy one, and the greed was entirely focused on him. The woman was smiling, not with bloodlust or rage, but with an indulging smile, like she was a mother watching her child playing. That was the worst part, given how unsettling it was. Now, more than ever before, Kojiro was glad that he'd trained himself to be ambidextrous. He would need it. With how hard she was going to hit, he needed to hold onto his blades as best he could.
Kojiro let out a slow breath and focused himself, ignoring Chiyome's eyes and focusing on her movements. According to Seigen, the most important thing to keep in mind when using two blades at once was to constantly keep the blades moving, to keep flowing. The ability to move from action to action without pause and without loss of momentum was the most important skill that a wielder of dual swords needed to have. It was expected that one was able to transfer the strength from one blow into another attack, and that attack into a defense, and then that defense into another attack. It was about using your opponent's power, usually the reach and weight provided by a larger sword, against them, a far cry from how an odachi was used. An odachi was all about how to use weight and momentum to cleave open enemy defenses, before capitalizing on those defenses. Had Chiyome been using an odachi, Kojiro might've stood more of a chance, but what the hell was he supposed to do against another pair of dual blades, whose user was both faster and stronger than he was?
So far, Chiyome's speed had been limited to straight lines, and Kojiro was able to react to her fists, so maybe she could only move fast in straight lines, given some space to get going? It wasn't much of anything to go off of, but it had to do. The woman was done waiting for Kojiro now, and moved, charging straight at him. She'd kicked off of the floor so hard that the planks had cratered. Kojiro had but a moment to react to the attack, notice the position the swords were in, before he needed to hit the floor in order to avoid being bisected by a crosscut. Chiyome shot over his head, and Kojiro moved quickly, engaging her as rapidly as he could. He was working off of his theory that Chiyome needed a bit of space to really ramp up, so by closing that distance with his body and his swords, the only thing he needed to worry about was the woman's strength. He dashed in while she was still turning around, Kojiro's tanto poised to pierce her stomach the moment she turned, and his wakizashi ready to slash her neck. She turned and when Kojiro responded, rather than take the hits, she twisted. Somehow, Chiyome bent her back at a forty-five degree angle mid-turn, avoiding both attacks. She untwisted, launching a ruthless spinning roundhouse into Kojiro's chest.
Something broke, and Kojiro skidded across the throne room door, bouncing once, then twice. His back ached, his chest felt like it'd caved in, some of his ribs had been shattered, but crucially, he could still breathe in easily. A quick twist proved painful, but manageable, so Kojiro clambered to his feet, only to be greeted by a trio of kunai. The first would have killed him instantly, had he failed to block it. That and the second kunai that would have stabbed his heart were knocked off course by a downward swing of his wakizashi, but Kojiro wasn't able to escape the third. Thankfully, it hadn't been thrown to try and kill him but to prevent him from jumping away, so it only tore clothing. Then Chiyome was in front of him again, delivering a diagonal slash that would have chopped Kojiro's torso in two. Parrying it numbed Kojiro's entire left arm, but before he could even address that issue, a stab towards his neck needed to be blocked. He had bet on the thin chance that chopping at the mad-woman's wrist would get her to pull back. Thankfully, it had. The next attack broke that relief, when Chiyome chopped down with both swords, determined to split Kojiro's head in two. Using both tanto and wakizashi, Kojiro caught it, then threw it to the side, refusing to accept a blade lock with someone so much stronger than him.
She just. kept. on. going. On and on it went, each of the woman's blows coming down harder and faster, as she built herself into a frenzy. A vicious cut that would have decapitated him came at the same time as a slash to the abdomen that would have opened his stomach. Had Kojiro not stepped into the range of the swords, in order to prevent them from being fully swung, Kojiro was certain that one hand or the other would have lost strength, and he would have died. As it was, he needed to use his tanto to guard against the cut, while using his wakizashi to prevent the slash from going through. Unfortunately, this forced his arms into a terrible position, where the arm holding the tanto blocked some of his vision. Kojiro was punished for it. Chiyome dropped her sword, pulled her arm back, and pulled a kunai out of nowhere. It was lobbed at point blank range, and Kojiro also had to let go of his weapon, in order to grab the woman's arm and push it sideways. He let go of her arm, then planted his fist in her throat, forcing her to stumble backwards, grabbing at her throat. Kojiro swiped his weapon off of the floor, just in time to defend against a horizontal swipe that would have literally cratered his torso. His tanto shattered, the blade snapping from the pressure. Kojiro constantly and carefully maintaining it was the only thing that had kept it going for so long.
He stepped in, taking advantage of the fact that Chiyome had dropped the wakizashi in her left hand to cut forward with the broken tanto. There was about three inches of jagged steel there, which would cause damage. She leapt backwards, to dodge it, giving about ten feet of room. Kojiro used it, dropping away the broken tanto and picking up the woman's wakizashi. His entire body was bruised and exhausted. At this rate, both of his weapons would break again, and he'd die. No, this wouldn't do at all. He needed to focus. Kojiro needed to change mindsets. Without his odachi, he couldn't battle as he usually did. His swords weren't nearly as long or heavy as they needed to be, in order to do that. He needed to pry at and batter his opponent with a thousand potentially dangerous hits, rather than a single fatal one. Blow after flow, flurry after flurry, like she'd been doing to him. Kojiro calmed his heart, stilled his mind, and recalled a conversation he'd had with his father long ago. It'd been about how to access the stage of Embodiment. All Siegen had said on the matter was that all Kojiro had to do was 'move.' He cast off all thought, about any potential plans for escape, thoughts about if Kano had gotten to Nobunaga's camp safely, terror at how close he was to dying, hope for the future. His mind went still, then the world itself stilled around him. Kojiro felt the next breath flow through his body like liquid fire and the world seemed to shrink. The surroundings disappeared, that faint smell of charred wood vanished, Ogimachi faded away, and all that was left was the ten foot distance between Kojiro and his foe.
When he let out the next breath, the fire vanished. All that was left was a clear mind. The enemy approached, but Kojiro felt no fear. After all, this swing was identical to one that he'd seen before. The muscles in the enemy's right arm had twitched over so slightly and her shoulder had pulled back. A horizontal slash, meant to force Kojiro on the defensive. The attack wouldn't go according to her plan. He stepped forward, slammed the handle of one wakizashi into the foe's weapon, then swung the other at her neck, all in the space of a single moment. The enemy's physical prowess allowed her to dodge. Kunai now. Three of them, launched with a flick of her wrist. The first, aimed at the forehead, the second, for his left arm, the third, for his right. The twitching of her eyes had informed him of their destinations. A tilt of the head rendered the first useless, and all he had to do was lift his blades to deflect the last two. Kojiro moved closer. He stabbed and cut for her neck and wrist. Blocked. No matter. A slice at her chest hiding the other wakazahi's intent to sever a limb. The slice was twisted away from, while the second attack was parried. Continue. Step in. Kojiro took his next breath. Three stabs with his right wakizashi, for her throat, eyes, and heart. Dodged. The enemy's forearm tensed. Kojiro trapped the incoming swipe with his left wakizashi, opening his foe to a counter. A kick ensured that her guard was broken for a while longer. A haphazard swipe, telegraphed by a furrowing of the eyebrow and the movement of the veins in the foe's hand. Duck under it, step into her guard. Disarm. Kojiro raised his right wakizashi, snaked the blade around the weapon, and with a flick, forced the sword from her hand. Another breath. Kojiro's blades moved with a fatal certainty. The left wakizashi would cut her throat, the left wakizashi would pierce her heart. They would kill.
An inch away from the enemy's skin, they stopped, prevented from touching the skin. An aura of red and black was holding back Kojiro's weapon. His hands trembled as Kojiro pushed, but nothing. The repelling force of the aura was too strong. All the woman did was smile and pull the strap away from her face. Her other eye was revealed, a burning red pupil with an horizontal slit for an iris. A presence descended, as if a deity had deigned to descend to earth, and found Kojiro unworthy. A wave of power pushed Kojiro back, and he was forced to balance as he skid across the floor. The madness in her eyes had vanished, only to be replaced with something much worse. Absolute calm.
Chiyome whispered a single word, "Congratulations."
A/N:
So, uh, Chiyome used Snake God, it's super effective? Also, Chiyome was basically using reinforcement the entire fight, on top of having the base physique of someone from the Age of Gods, due to her connection with Orochi. Kojiro's been keeping up with her with roughly baseline human ability. Did I shamelessly borrow the concept of Kojiro's Embodiment ability from Record of Ragnarok? Yes. Also, Embodiment is kinda like full body Reinforcement with a Mystic Eye ability. Let's call it a Mystic Body, just a different way to attain the Root, yeah? If Diarmiud can have a Mystic Face, Kojiro can have a Mystic Body. To anywho says this is op, possibly, but consider Gilgamesh literally has Sha Naqba Imuru, which gives him the perfect move in any scenario once he activates it. Every Servant is op, given ideal conditions w/o plot armor stuff. Even some non-servants, like Magicians.
